RUME 14 (Volume 4)
2011
Portland, Oregon
WHERE IS THE LOGIC IN PROOFS?
Page: 191
algebra, and topology, found that only 1.7% of proof lines involved logic beyond common sense reasoning. Where is the logic? How much of it is just common sense? Does proving involve forms of deductive reasoning that are logic-like, but are not immediately derivable from predicate or propositional calculus? Also, can the needed logic be taught in context while teaching proof- construction instead of first teaching it in an abstract, disembodied way? Through a theoretical framework emerging from a line-by-line analysis of proofs and task-based interviews with students, | try to shed light on these questions.